In the manufacture of collet assemblies for use with machine tools such as lathes or other forming tools, it has been the practice to manufacture a collet with a plurality of fingers that are deflected during use to effect a holding action on a tool or a workpiece. A number of designs are available to impart this flexing motion to the arms of a collet with the workpiece typically inserted through a central bore which is defined by an opening between the deflecting arms. In many applications, the force imparted on a tool or workpiece held between the arms or jaws of a flexible collet will vary with the rotational speed imparted to the collet from a drive shaft. In many cases, where the article held by the collet is unevenly balanced, premature failure of the collet can occur particularly in the case of collets that have had their parts formed by casting followed by machining.